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Ford News

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  • bpizzutibpizzuti Member Posts: 2,743
    Maybe but I'm sure at least $5000 of it is the "We know the government will give it to you so we want it" markup.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    I thought it was more like $7,500. :)

    Surely battery prices will fall like the price of computers. Except that they've been working on battery technology for 100 years now. :sick:
  • xwesxxwesx Member Posts: 16,762
    Yes, I'm positive that is the mentality. Much like the "cash for clunkers" mentality of dealers during that fiasco.

    For me, that credit would result in about $1,500 back. So, if I was looking at purchasing a Focus E, I wouldn't even sit down at the table until we were at $35K. But, since I'm completely outside the target demographic anyway, the point is moot.
    2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100, 1976 Ford F250
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    edited April 2012
    I read in the comments to the WSJ version of this story that the batteries don't work below 14 degrees anyway. That would put you out of commission for weeks months. :D

    (I won't mention the 1/2" of snow that was on the ground here this morning, lol).
  • xwesxxwesx Member Posts: 16,762
    (I won't mention the 1/2" of snow that was on the ground here this morning, lol)

    Hah! The weather here is gorgeous! Sunny and getting near sixty the last few days. It barely froze last night. Pretty nice for mid-April in Fairbanks.... :shades:

    That said, I would be shocked if the batteries "didn't work" below that temperature. They likely lose capacity, but they will not fail to operate. What's more, ambient temperature means little if you keep it in a heated garage, and one could simply put a heating pad on the battery pack while it is plugged in during the day (assuming the vehicle is outside).

    I ran some numbers on it, though, and with electricity at twenty-two cents per kilowatt-hour, gasoline would need to be at ~$7/gal for it to become a cost-effective option. In other words, it should hit stride in another year or two. :sick:
    2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100, 1976 Ford F250
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    "Fitch Ratings upgraded its rating for Ford from BB+, which denotes high-yield junk status, to BBB-, which is just over the threshold into investment-grade status. If Ford gets a similar boost from Standard & Poor's or Moody's, its credit rating will officially be considered restored to investment-grade -- and that would be a draw for investors interested in lower-risk bonds."

    Ford On Road Back to Investment-Grade Credit Rating (Straightline)
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    "With his disheveled shock of long gray hair and brightly painted wooden clogs, Karpen has had no trouble getting noticed.

    At the Ford meetings, whenever the floor opened up for general comment, the engineer from Long Island, New York, would dart to the podium, hold up a light bulb, and in a high nasal voice launch into the virtues of neodymium oxide technology, for which he holds several patents.

    There's always basically been these guys who think they have a great idea, but they can't bust through the bureaucracy of the car business"

    Ford's gearhead gadfly may skip the annual meeting (Reuters)
  • xwesxxwesx Member Posts: 16,762
    edited May 2012
    Let's see... he had the patents he needed in the 1990's, so if neodymium oxide technology is as effective as he claims, it should catch on in another five to ten years (in other words, just after patent protection expires). ;)

    I tell you what, I would LOVE to have windshields that filtered glare. I have a recurrent corneal erosion that makes night driving a real PITA due to the glare. I doubt this tech would solve that problem, but it would sure help.
    2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100, 1976 Ford F250
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    edited May 2012
    Heh, I bet you're right. Have you noticed all the "French door" refrigerators that hit the market a few years ago? They didn't become trendy all of a sudden because they are stylish or useful, it was just that the patent had expired.

    Just wait a couple of decades - at my age, driving at night is something to be avoided period.
  • podpod Member Posts: 176
    Glare haunts me as well. Never had the problem until I hit 60 y.o or so but it is quite annoying expecially with all the foglights and poorly aimed headlights that could fry an egg at 1000 feet. My solution which helps a good bit is to wear lightly tinted polaroid sunglasses when I drive at night. The polarizers dramatically reduce reflection intensity and the tint generally reduces intensity. Try it you will like it I expect. Also I have the autodimming rear view mirror and my side mirrors set correctly so that I see none of my car (or of near by cars behind me) in either mirror. These adjustments should help.
  • xwesxxwesx Member Posts: 16,762
    I have some polarized glasses, but they are tinted. According to my optometry place, there is no such thing as non-tinted polarized lenses... yet I cannot imagine that to be true. So, i have these yellow "high contrast" lenses that I tried last year. They work well for reducing glare, but I find they darken my view enough that I cannot wear them safely during normal driving - I just can't see well ahead.

    Luckily, I live in an area that generally does not have high traffic volumes, so I can just shade my "bad eye" on the days the glare really bothers me.
    2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100, 1976 Ford F250
  • cannon3cannon3 Member Posts: 296
    I don't know where people are getting $25,000 for a Ford Focus?? I paid just over $19,000 for my Ford Focus Hatchback SE, sport package,winter package, convenience package, sunroof. Pkg 204A. Yes, I did have rebates. Very nicely equipped and right in there when comparing option for option to other vehicles in this class. Great little car. Ford should have brought this Focus over years earlier. Americans are not used to this kind of quality/refinement in small cars. In Europe small cars rule, and they know how to build them!

    Ford is on a roll and as with any car brand you will have those who don't like it. The new Fusion is going to blow away the Camry and Accord. Just in safety features alone it will make them pale in comparison. Styling i know is subjective. I like it. However, I really liked the stack head lamp look of the 2006-2009 Fusion, wish they would have built on that. I think the 2013 Fusion is going to make Honda and Toyota look just plain frumpy.
    With reliability becoming such a non-factor because these numbers are within points of each other, I believe safety, MPG, and innovations are going to win consumers over the next decade. I believe Ford Motor Company will be here for the next 100 years providing quality vehicles.
  • anythngbutgmanythngbutgm Member Posts: 4,277
    Not really car related, as much as "Ford" related. It was pretty much a reality show based around the new Ford Escape. Didn't hear much about it after the initial advertising. Looks like it was a failed experiment.

    link title
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    "Ford Motor Co. will offer more new car models over the next three years than any other automaker, according to a Bank of America/Merrill Lynch report released Wednesday.

    Ford will change 26 percent of its lineup for the model years 2013 through 2016 compared with an industry average of 23 percent, the bank's annual "Car Wars" report said."

    Ford to lead rollouts of new models (Detroit News)
  • berriberri Member Posts: 10,165
    I'll be curious to see how that Euro look craze at Ford does over time as more of their vehicles come out reflecting it. Same for eco-boost turbos.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    After years of restructuring its balance sheet, Ford got back its investment grade rating at Moody's Tuesday and with it the Blue Oval logo, which the automaker mortgaged in the past.

    Ford Gets Back Its Investment Grade Rating and the Ford Blue Oval (streetinsider.com)
  • berriberri Member Posts: 10,165
    That's a good thing or the greedy Wall Streeters would have probably sold it to some Chinese company!
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    edited May 2012
    The Chinese would probably just say, nice try Jac. (MotorTrend - note the badge)
  • berriberri Member Posts: 10,165
    Jac - as in Nasser. Just kidding. You're right, they've probably got a knock off already.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    Forgot about the former Ford CEO. Only a real car guy would make that connection. :D

    Hard to believe, but it's been seven years since Ford was in junk status. Mulally signed on six years ago.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    "Ford Motor Co.'s President and Chief Executive Alan Mulally says the company can't build enough vehicles to meet consumer demand.

    Mulally said Ford would continue to boost production this year and acknowledged that supply issues will prevent it from building as many vehicles as it wants."

    Ford can't build enough vehicles to meet demand (Detroit News)
  • xwesxxwesx Member Posts: 16,762
    Sounds like a great problem to have. Short supplies mean higher values and less time on the lots, so I'm sure dealers aren't crying to much about it.

    Of course, I also wouldn't mind if their production numbers come up before I buy, so I can work out a better deal. :shades:
    2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100, 1976 Ford F250
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    Are you an active duty member of the U.S. military in the process of shopping for a new or used car? A news reporter is interested in talking with you. Please contact pr@edmunds.com by June 30, 2012.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    edited June 2012
    "What is this shameful Mustang-shaped hole in my heart? Why can I actually, practically imagine myself owning one of these redneck hoo-hahs? What need would it satisfy? Admit it, the Ford Mustang has baggage. Six-cylinder Mustangs are chick cars. I'm sorry, it's in the Bible. And when people start piling horsepower on top of the V8-powered cars—a rogue's gallery of Saleens and Roushes and Super Snakes—they get completely ridiculous. Commuting in one is like wearing a bejeweled codpiece to work.
    And yet, as I imagine what it would be like to own our test car—a 662-horsepower, 200-mph Ford Mustang Shelby GT500—I dig it."

    Obliterate Boredom (WSJ)
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    "The company’s chief financial officer, Robert Shanks, said in an interview that conditions in Europe were “getting tougher,” as manufacturers stepped up discounts to jump-start sales, which are at their lowest level in more than a decade. “We lost $190 million in the first quarter, and it will be three times greater than that” in the second quarter, Mr. Shanks said in the interview, held at Ford’s world headquarters."

    Ford Motor, Citing Europe’s Woes, Says Foreign Losses to Triple in Quarter (New York Times)
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    "In June, the Ford Escape set an any-month record – with sales up 28 percent –
    while the Ford Fusion set a record for June. Ford Explorer sales were up 35
    percent from last year, and F-Series sales are up 11 percent and topped 50,000
    for the first June in five years."

    Ford Motor Company June and Year-to-Date Sales Up 7% (Bloomberg)
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    edited July 2012
    Since no one seems to care about sales reports, how about knowing how many ping-pong balls a Ford Escape can hold?

    Ford using ping-pong balls to measure interior cargo space (Detroit News)
  • fezofezo Member Posts: 10,384
    Isn't that an old Ludwig Von Drake trick?
    2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
  • xwesxxwesx Member Posts: 16,762
    Just so you don't feel bad, Steve, I do look at and review the reports you post here. I just don't always have something to say about them.... :blush:
    2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100, 1976 Ford F250
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    2013 Ford C-Max Hybrid Beats Toyota Prius V in Fuel-Economy Race, Says Ford (Inside Line)

    The naysayers comment that the C-Max should really be compared to a regular Prius, not the V.

    My wife says the interior room would be the deciding factor for her. We're not doing anything until the old cars die though.
  • bpizzutibpizzuti Member Posts: 2,743
    So the Toyota fanbois say it doesn't count? Gee, what a surprise.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    Hey, are you calling my wife a fanboi?

    :P
  • bpizzutibpizzuti Member Posts: 2,743
    If the Prius fits... :shades:
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    It would fit nicely in the garage. But that "wave your foot, open the hatch" gizmo on the C-Max is pretty cool.
  • bpizzutibpizzuti Member Posts: 2,743
    Yeah, wish they could have put it on the Focus too.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    Ford gets hammered by JD Power for their tech implementation but there's a reason for working out the bugs:

    "For Bryan Espey, 26, who works marketing for a check-printing company in Lenexa, Kan., the decision between a 2012 Ford Focus Titanium and a Volkswagen Golf TDI came down to which made it easier to play the Spotify Internet music service from his Android phone, he said. He chose the Focus."

    4G Internet more important to Gen Y than V-8 cars (Detroit News)
  • anythngbutgmanythngbutgm Member Posts: 4,277
    No wonder GM rushed out the new Rentibu...

    link title

    This beats the Camry hybrid and is a serious contender for the current Prius.
  • xwesxxwesx Member Posts: 16,762
    But, I bet you can't get it in a manual. :(

    Otherwise, it has everything going for it.
    2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100, 1976 Ford F250
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    Sporty looking 4 door sedan.

    What eco-conscious person is going to buy that? No one will know your street cred. :P
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    "Ford Motor Co. says its Focus small car is on track to become the best-selling car in the world this year, trumping the Toyota Corolla.

    Ford sold 489,616 Focus sedans and hatchbacks worldwide in the first half of 2012. That was almost 27,000 more than the perennial best-seller, the Toyota Corolla."

    Ford Focus on track to beat Toyota Corolla as best-selling car (Detroit News)
  • bpizzutibpizzuti Member Posts: 2,743
    If only it had a bigger gas tank (and a REAL manual mode) I'd grab one.
  • xwesxxwesx Member Posts: 16,762
    Worldwide? I'm curious what % are manual transmissions. I think they have a very nice feel to the shifter. I seriously considered the Focus due to the extra cargo space (the passenger space is similar to Fiesta) until I stumbled across the Fiesta I bought. FE is so comparable as to be of limited concern; the higher price tag of course made me pause a little.
    2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100, 1976 Ford F250
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    The WSJ is reporting that Ford is "preparing to shake up its European operations as the auto maker moves toward the expected naming of an heir-apparent to Chief Executive Alan Mulally.

    The Dearborn, Mich., company's board is close to naming Mark Fields, now head of Ford's North and South American units, to the new position of chief operating officer."

    Mulally is 67 but no retirement announcement appears imminent.

    In other news, Oldest Ford Car Up for Auction (Inside Line)
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    Ford and the CAW have a new 4 year agreement up on Canada. So attention will again shift to Mulally and whether he sticks around next year in one role or another.

    "Reports have been out that the board is now considering its replacements for the great CEO. The good news for Ford investors is that this may not take place until late in 2013. The bad news is that if you look at the body language that Mulally has telegraphed, and if you look at the comments from the company, a Mulally departure in the relatively near future seems all but certain. Reports last week showed that Ford might even consider keeping Mulally on as a nonexecutive chairman."

    More on Ford After the Mulally Regime (Market Watch)
  • dieselonedieselone Member Posts: 5,729
    edited September 2012
    A nonhybrid Fusion can be had with a manual. The 1.6 ecoboost has an available manual trans in the '13 Fusion. The 1.6 EB with a manual could be a fun car. To bad a manual won't be offered with the 2.0 Ecoboost.
  • xwesxxwesx Member Posts: 16,762
    It can, though I'm not sure it would be all that peppy given it is a 3500# car. It guess its overall feel would be determined more by its driving dynamics than its acceleration. I think that, in this case, we were discussing the hybrid version specifically. But, if they can pull off something like mid 30s EPA rating on the car, it should be quite a hit given that it knocks the pants off the other class offerings in terms of looks.
    2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100, 1976 Ford F250
  • dieselonedieselone Member Posts: 5,729
    It can, though I'm not sure it would be all that peppy given it is a 3500# car.

    I'm optimistic considering the 1.6 ecoboost has a decent amount of torque across a wide rpm range. So while it certainly won't be fast, with a manual, it could be entertaining to drive at least.
  • xwesxxwesx Member Posts: 16,762
    I agree, depending on driving dynamics. It certainly looks like it could be entertaining!

    I'm still nursing my annoyance with Ford being non-committal about putting the 1.6L ecoboost in the Fiesta. That would be fun. Heck, it's fun without the ecoboost; having it would be a downright BLAST! :shades:
    2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100, 1976 Ford F250
  • berriberri Member Posts: 10,165
    The unions always seem to pick Ford when times are difficult. I guess they're an easy mark for caving in.
  • lemkolemko Member Posts: 15,261
    Actually, Ford was the last to cave into the UAW. Henry Ford had his own private army of thugs led by Harry Bennett, who was nothing more than a gangster, to attack striking workers.
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